Monetary Policy
BoJ has increased income inequality, says Dutch paper
Researchers at The Netherlands Bank say the Bank of Japan’s asset purchases have contributed to the country’s income inequality by pushing up asset prices
Draghi points to ECB action next month
European Central Bank holds rates but is ‘comfortable’ with the prospect of easing monetary policy following next month’s economic forecasts
IMF pushes Kazakhstan to modernise monetary policy
The National Bank of Kazakhstan should widen its exchange rate band and adopt ‘more effective’ interest rate instruments, the IMF says
Jeremy Stein casts doubt on Fed's communication strategy
The governor, who steps down later this month, says he failed to appreciate how challenging communicating monetary policy can be before joining the Fed
RBNZ’s Wheeler threatens currency intervention
Graeme Wheeler spells out the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s concern over its ‘overvalued’ currency, and says the central bank would consider intervening
Yves Mersch says EU treaty change could entrench monetary and banking union
Changing the EU treaties could, according to Mersch, help strengthen the institutional framework underpinning the Economic and Monetary Union
Central Asia's central banks should shift attention to communication strategies – IMF
While some central banks in the Caucasus and Central Asia ‘require further development of instruments', others may ‘shift attention to communication strategies
OECD urges ECB to cut key rate
The OECD chief economist calls on the European Central Bank to cut its main refinance rate to zero and prepare for ‘additional non-conventional stimulus’
Bangladesh Bank governor hails SME finance initiative
Central bank funding for SME lending has seen loans to small businesses grow in absolute terms, and as a share of bank lending, since 2010
China should adopt new intermediate target for monetary policy, say IMF economists
Economists at the IMF analyse demand for money in China and conclude the PBoC would be better off targeting interest rates in the economy rather than monetary aggregates
Central bankers give mixed review of BoE forward guidance
One third of respondents to CentralBanking.com poll say the Bank of England’s second phase of forward guidance is an admission that its first attempt was a failure
IMF moves to unshackle programme countries' monetary policy
The Fund's move towards more flexible conditionality in support programmes is part of a bigger push, but some say it does not go far enough
Inflation rebound eases pressure on ECB
An increase in annual inflation and an improving credit outlook will help ease the pressure on the European Central Bank governing council, which meets in Brussels next week
Fed slows asset purchases to $45 billion a month
Growth in economic activity has picked up recently, after having slowed sharply during the winter in part because of adverse weather conditions, the FOMC notes
IMF $17 billion rescue package will see Ukraine head towards IT regime
Ukraine's central bank will, with IMF help, transition to an inflation targeting regime in mid-2015 as part of a $17 billion rescue package agreed last night
Cœuré sees ‘limited’ case for central bank cooperation
More cooperation between central banks would not have produced especially different policies in the wake of the financial crisis, according to ECB’s Benoît Cœuré
Poland still has euro doubts after decade in EU
The National Bank of Poland could need two years to make technical adjustments before the country can join the eurozone; ERM II presents another hurdle
Pakistan governor sets out communications ‘revamp’
State Bank of Pakistan’s Wathra says the central bank will be updating its website to make it more ‘transparent’ as well as running workshops for local journalists
Bank of England launches review of MPC transcripts policy
Bank of England commissions former Fed governor Kevin Warsh to review practice of destroying records and assess the costs and benefits of publishing meeting transcripts
Colombian interbank oligopoly requires new monetary policy transmission model
The domination of Colombia's interbank market by a few large players means traditional models cannot predict how monetary policy, and financial crises, will be transmitted
Structural reforms could get eurozone out of recession, paper shows
Bank of Portugal working paper finds structural economic reforms could get the eurozone out of recession and away from the zero lower bound if designed correctly
ECB paper finds eurozone inflation better anchored than US
Analysis of medium- and longer-term inflation expectations at times of economic shocks finds European inflation expectations more firmly anchored than in the US
Turkey's Başçı says inflation will peak in May
Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey governor Erdem Başçi says current account deficit to shrink 'substantially' in 2014 at conference hosted by National Bank of Macedonia in Skopje
Financial markets still fragmented, say ECB and Commission
European Central Bank and European Commission find the eurozone is more economically and financially fragmented now than it was before the crisis